then you're going to love this. right now they're only $14.95! wow-a grt deal just got a whole lot better. hurry. $14.95 won't last. time's up for us. that's all for "early start." >> "starting point with soledad o'brien" starts right now. good morning, welcome, everybody. our starting point this morning, extreme weather. a thousand-mile-long line of severe storms including tornados and severe flooding is leaving a path of destruction from the south to the northeast. here comes the cold. also this morning, some tense negotiations happening in alabama right now. a 6-year-old boy has been held hostage since tuesday. we're expecting a news conference to update us on this

situation any moment. we're going to take you there live when it happens. get ready, confirmation hearings begin as chuck hagel fights to be the next defense secretary but it could be an uphill battle with an old friend, john mccain, leading the resistance. and here it is, this is the new blackberry 10, soledad. so what makes it so different from this one and with him it make blackberry relevant again? i'll break down all the changes and fun little things for you, soledad. >> thank you. it's thursday, january 31st. "starting point" begins right now. welcome, everybody. lets get right to that press conference that we told you we were expecting out of alabama. i want to throw that up on the screen right now. let's listen in. >> as much as the land that we're standing on right now, people have been good enough to work with us through all this. the law enforcement agencies, the red cross, the salvation army, all the private businesses

that's brought in food for the volunteers and the workers and law enforcement, you know, it's just a multiple agencies here and people helping out and stuff like that. you know, just a multitude of people. again, you know, we really don't have a whole lot to add. i mean i hate to tell you that. i mean but that's the way it is. but i do appreciate your continued support and effort and i know it's getting cold out here, so i really can't take a lot of questions because we've got a lot going on, but thank you, okay. >> have you had any contact with him at all? >> right now, like i said, i can't take a lot of questions. >> do you know if he has enough food or blankets? >> like i said, right now i can't -- i can't go into any of that, okay? >> this has been going on now for about 30 hours.

[ inaudible question ] >> i can't hear you. >> how are your men holding up after 30 hours of dealing with this? >> you know, we're doing good. everybody is doing good. [ inaudible question ] >> right now i can't. [ inaudible question ] >> i can't -- right now i'm not at liberty to stay. >> what about the timeline? will this go for a while longer? >> we have no idea, no way of knowing that right now. i'm going to have to cut it off here because we've got a lot going on and i've got a couple more folks that want to talk. again, i want to thank everybody for their help and continued support. thank you. >> you just heard the very little that was said in that news conference that only lasted a couple of minutes. you can see a representative from the sheriff's department

being unable to actually answer a lot of the questions. that's because this investigation and a hostage situation that is unfolding right now. the question was how are the men holding up. he said they're doing okay. also a question on how long do they think this hostage situation will last, and you could hear him say, in fact, he has no idea. we're get to george howell who has more for us as he is in midland city, alabama, this morning. george, good morning. >> reporter: soledad, good morning. you know, this update no different than the update we got the other night saying that the young child is not harmed. that's the most important thing, you know, that the child is okay. still in this bunker, now going on day three. soledad, we've also gotten some new information about the child's age, 5 years old, not 6 years old. this is according to a state representative, steve clouse, who has been in close contact with the family. but again, as each hour passes, this is a desperate situation. clouse says that the family is hanging on by a thread at this point, just watching and waiting

as these investigators do their best to resolve this issue, soledad. >> oh, my goodness, i can imagine. we'll be talking, george, in just a little bit to steve clouse, the legislator who has been spending a lot of time with the family. we'll talk to him and get more of an update if we can on not just the story but also how that family is doing this morning. we also want to talk about that other big story, the massive 1,000-mile-long storm system that's now moved through the eastern u.s. tornados, strong winds, flooding, all pummelling the eastern half of the country. one of the hardest-hit spots was adairsville, georgia, 60 miles north of atlanta. one person there died as did a man in pntennessee. let's get right to miguel marquez. miguel, good morning. >> reporter: good morning there, soledad. the person who died here in adairsville died fairly close to where we were standing right now. he was in a manufactured home and a tree killed him. this storm packed a

thousand-mile punch. >> we could see circulation in the clouds. >> reporter: a reporter from atlanta affiliate wsb caught one twister as it touched down. >> slashing toward i-75. again, a tornado -- >> reporter: in its path, utter destruction. >> this is main street in adairsville, georgia. this is exactly where that tornado hit. you can see devastation on that side of the street, the trucks completely destroyed here. and on this side was a normal day of work here at the plant where they make parts for tractors. complete devastation. 50 to 100 people working here today, all of them fine. across this entire area, trucks, everythin everything, shredded. at the plant justin carnes and his fellow employees took refuge in the bathroom. >> what did it sound like, what did it feel like? >> walls shaking, everything was shaking. and there was like a pressure on my ears, real high-pitched whistling sound.

it was just -- hurt my ears really. >> reporter: the thousand-mile-long storm set off tornados in six states from missouri to georgia, leaving massive damage and creating drastic temperature changes. in nashville, one man died when a tree fell on his home. >> it was a bad sight. the tree fell like right on him. >> reporter: in memphis, torrential rain and massive flooding. bridges, underpasses inundated. in monticello, arkansas, a horse barn collapsed. all 11 horses, a-okay. in indiana, downed trees and fire. lightning is suspected. kentucky saw strong winds flipping tractor-trailers like toys. and winds so fierce in scott county, missouri, 48 train cars knocked right over. and across alabama, wind, rain and more misery. what you're looking at there is

a building that's almost cliche to say but that building was perfectly fine. the one next to where we're standing was a rental, apparently nobody was in there so nobody injured or killed here, but it is always amazing to see these things, how it skips from one and misses another. >> miguel marquez for us this morning. it is always amazing how a swath is just shredded and then homes stand right nearby. thanks, miguel. appreciate the update. let's get right to our meteorologist, indra petersons. let's look at the forecast, is it moving out? >> for the most part it's just left in the northeast. the story today really isn't about that severe line of storms but rather all that cold air behind it that was the troublemaker in the first place. i want to give you an idea how strange this weather was in the first place. monday, 48 degrees. look at chicago, 48 degrees. by tuesday it got up to 63. yesterday severe weather, 44 degrees. currently now down to 17 with a chance of snow showers in the forecast. so, yes, very wacky weather. all of that of course thanks to

the cold air replacing all of that warm air. >> so let's talk a little bit about what they're expecting as they do this cleanup. obviously i have covered a lot of these stories where the weather is terrible for people as they try to clean up. what's the weather going to be for those folks where we saw miguel, for example, standing. are they going to have clearing or rain and messiness the next couple of days. >> the good news is we're not going to be talking about rain but unfortunately it's going to be very cold. all of that cold air is spreading from canada down into the southeast so temperatures are 30 degrees cooler from where they were yesterday. >> all right, appreciate the update. i want to turn back to that hostage situation in midland city, alabama. it is still under way. a little boy, originally reported adds 6 years old, we're now being told that he is 5 years old, he is a kindergartner, now being held in a bunker. we want to get to alabama state representative steve clouse who has been helping the family and is with us this morning. thanks for your time. i know you have been reaching out to the family. tell me how they're holding up. i mean this is just -- this is

just horrible. >> well, soledad, they're just holding on by a thread right now, just hoping for a peaceful resolution to get their little boy back, get him back to his family. of course while we're trying for that resolution, we also have the situation of the slain bus driver. his family is devastated. we had five prayer vigils around the county last night. everybody is coming together to support this family, to support getting this little boy back. the bus driver, we owe him all a debt of gratitude. >> he's being considered a hero. how is his family holding off? >> not very good. everybody is in shock. he started the day off as a school bus driver and he ended as a hero. >> so yesterday i guess there was some good news in that there were reports that this little boy was being fed, that he had asked for coloring books and he was getting them and some medicine that he needed.

i believe he has asperger's and he needed some medication and he was getting that. has that been consistent, that they're delivering things to him and they know at least he's okay, he's alive? >> yes. you know, we don't know -- they're not releasing what his condition is, but he is getting his medicine. the next day, yesterday, he asked for his coloring books and they were able to get him his coloring books. so hopefully he's calm. >> i want to ask you the last final question, some neighbors have been talking about the man who is a suspect in this case, jimmy lee dikes and the neighbors talked about how he beat a dog. others said that he was a ticking time bomb. when you hear stories like this, you know, what do you -- what do you know about this suspect? >> i don't know anything about him. i don't know him. i think he's relatively new to

the -- this particular neighborhood. but it's obviously a mental health issue here. so it's -- that's what the situation is. >> steve clouse is with the alabama state legislature joining us this morning. thank you for your time. i know you're super busy this morning so we truly appreciate it. >> thank you. >> we'll continue to watch the story for you as it unfolds, as this hostage situation continues. i want to turn now to the mass shooting in newtown, connecticut, sparking a national debate on gun control. it seems to be raging on from congress to town halls to people discussing it every day. yesterday that mass shooting in phoenix was unfolding even as the senate tried to find a solution to end the violence. so how did that go? was there any sense of agreement? was there a tenor of, you know, we might be able to work together to do something in this meeting? >> reporter: you know, soledad, there was not a ton of agreement when we saw that hearing yesterday. democrats are emphasizing gun control solutions.

republicans were saying there are existing laws that are flawed and not well enforced and they say the mental health system is a wreck and it's all a sign of just how difficult it will be to get something through congress. a plea from former congresswoman gabby giffords who was shot in the head in 2011 during a shooting in arizona. >> speaking is difficult, but i need to say something important. violence is a big problem. too many children are dying. too many children. we must do something. >> reporter: president obama, who met with giffords tuesday, has promised action on the issue. >> we can't tolerate this anymore. these tragedies must end. and to end them, we must change.

>> reporter: putting forth proposals that include an assault weapons ban, a ban on high-capacity magazines and the measure that is seen as most likely to go somewhere, background checks on all gun purchases, including private sales by owners. but there is resistance from gun rights advocates. wayne lapierre, the head of the nra, says the federal government is not enforcing its existing gun laws effectively and the answer is not more gun laws. >> none of it makes any sense in the real world. >> mr. lapierre, that's the point. the criminals won't go to purchase the guns because there will be a back grounding check. we'll stop them from the original purchase. you missed that point completely. i think it's basic. >> reporter: but can the president push a far-reaching law to tackle gun violence through congress? >> is he biting off more than he can chew? >> this is a president with a 60% approval rating right now. he is in his last term as president. this is the time to strike while

the iron is hot. he's as popular as he may ever be. if he's going to go try to sell his agenda, now is the time to do it. >> reporter: president obama said in a univision interview yesterday that congress will pass bills on both gun violence and immigration in the coming months, but even some democrats like chuck schumer who support a wide-reaching bill are more optimistic that just something narrow like on background checks, closing that so-called gun shield loophole is really the thing that will have the most success. >> some democrats sounding very skeptical on that. thanks, appreciate it. at the bottom of the hour we'll talk with connecticut senator richard blumenthal who was at that hearing and get his assessment on how that went. tonight anderson will host a town hall. the topic is gun control with today's leading voices in the debate. anderson cooper 360 town hall, "guns under fire" 8:00 p.m. eastern here on cnn. golfer vijay singh, the

latest athlete involved in a doping scandal. he admitted to using deer antler spray. he said he didn't realize that was doping. how is that possible? we'll talk about that next. an incredible live picture of flooding that's happening right now. a car stuck in floodwaters. we'll tell you what's happening. more ahead. plus there's business news to talk about. >> blackberry 10. we've been talking about the new blackberry 10. it will be released in 10. we have this one and soledad will play with it. we'll tell you what makes it different. new nectresse. the 100% natural no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. new nectresse. sweetness naturally.

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welcome, everybody. you're looking at live pictures this morning, massive flooding. this is brookville, maryland. a car clearly stuck in the floodwaters there.

our affiliate station shooting this from their chopper. they say they do not believe that there's anybody whose stuck in that car. apparently there's a third car -- this is the third car that's been trapped in the water today. much of the flooding in the area surrounding washington, d.c., today so we are monitoring this as we update you on all the bad weather. this thousand-mile-long stretch of bad weather along the east coast we continue to follow. also the aftermath of that storm as well. we're talking about pro golfer vijay singh. he's admitted to using deer antler spray. i guess it's a substance that's supposed to enhance athletic performance. it's advertised as containing a hormone called igf1 which is banned by the world anti-doping agency and apparently banned by the pga tour. the ravens ray lewis was accused of using it in a report this week as well. in a statement, vijay singh says this. while i have used deer antler spray, at no time was i aware that it may contain a substance

that's banned under the pga tour anti-doping policy. in fact when i first received the product, i reviewed the list of ingredients and did not see any prohibited substances. the product also coming up in the alex rodriguez scandal we were talking about a little earlier this week. i want to get right to elizabeth cohen, our medical correspondent. what exactly is deer antler spray? why would that be beneficial to someone and why is that doping? >> right. the people who make this stuff say that it comes from what they call the velvet of deer antlers. they scrape this so-called velvet off and they say that the velvet contains igf1. and igf1 is the real deal. they give it to children who have medical conditions ajd are very short to help them grow. and the makers of these sprays, and there's a lot of them out there. the makers of these sprays say that it enhances muscle growth. they say that it can make you stronger. however, the experts that we talked to said the potential dangers are that it can also

increase the chances of having muscle pain and even getting diabetes and heart disease. >> is there some indication that deer antlers grow so fast or there's some quick regeneration? why would you use deer antlers versus something else? >> right, that's a great question. that's the reasoning that these products give. if you look them up online, they'll say, wow, antlers grow really fast. therefore, there's a substance that will make your muscles grow fast as well. i've got to tell you, this is really tricky reporting because there's no nih funded studies on deer antlers. i know that probably comes as a shock. >> what? >> i know. the fda is not looking at these products. no one is evaluating them. i mean this industry is largely unregulated. they can kind of put in a bottle whatever they want and call it whatever they want and their chances of getting caught are very, very small. we don't really know what this stuff does. as a matter of fact, some of the experts we talked to said they think it's over -- the claims are over the top. they say that it doesn't really work nearly as well as the

makers say it does. >> but people apparently using it. >> atmospheit's astounding what men will do and use. >> do deer antlers grow fast? >> they are one of the fastest growing things in nature. but these are grown men, professional athletes. why would force them to take deer antler spray. >> everybody wants an edge. everybody wants to know what's the edge that they're going to have against a competitor. >> that's so true. >> but not noeonly in sports, b in business. let's talk about the edge that you have since you now own a blackberry 10. >> i'm borrowing it. a company used to be known as rim but now it's called blackberry. i'm going to show you how it works and what's cool about it. you can play with it next. >> i love you for that. our "starting point" team is headed in. we'll talk about that and much more in just a moment. [ male announcer ] i've seen incredible things.

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welcome, everybody. our team this morning, richard socarides is with us, former senior adviser to president clinton. abby huntsman and katherine rosman joins us. it's nice to have all of you with us this morning. we want to begin with a little business news. >> yes, let's mind your business with a market check. stocks on the verge of record highs right now. they're trading mixed this morning, futures are, but the s&p has more than doubled since early 2009. why? why are stocks near records if the economy is slowing a little bit? corporate profits are coming in. the fed has been stimulating this economy for years. investors are now coming back. the big thing to watch, tomorrow's monthly jobs report. it's expected to say the economy added 180,000 jobs and the unemployment rate fell slightly to 7.7%. >> and what's the number of jobs they need to -- >> 150. so if you're coming in at 180,000, getting closer to

200,000 every month, that would show an economy that's healing and that's something clearly everyone wants to see. the new blackberry 10 is finally here. you can see dean over my shoulder. a cool new feature. a thing called time shift. that's my favorite thing. captures shots in the moments just before and after you take a picture and gives you all these images to choose from. soledad will love that. there's a larger screen, as you can see. there's something called blackberry balance that allows you to have two profiles, your work profile and personal profile. >> oh, that's good. >> what are you hiding, richard? >> no, i just like a little privacy. a little personal privacy. >> the keyboard is nice, the phone is nice. you know, i'm going to let you play with it a little bit because i want to see what you think about it. but i like an actual keyboard like the old one so i'm old school on the blackberry. i've talked to a lot of people. our own tech people, adrian covert was saying this is a great phone for a year ago. >> aren't they a few years behind? >> you're a die hard blackberry person. >> i love my blackberry, but i

do like them for the keyboard. and you're right, it's easier to type on this one. >> we all have iphones, everything is integrated on your phone. unless like we said it's a few years behind. unless it's that different, who's going to up and change? >> take the knife out of my back, abby, thank you. >> a lot of executives use both an iphone and blackberry who go through their emails on iphone but when they have to respond they use a blackberry. >> well, it's about time blackberry, the new company. i'll try it out. also ahead, chuck hagel will face some tough questions on capitol hill. his confirmation hearing has defense secretary begin. could be a seriously uphill battle. we'll tell you why. that's ahead. new nectresse. the 100% natural no-calorie sweetener made from the goodness of fruit. new nectresse. sweetness naturally.

welcome back, everybody. you're looking at some live pictures this morning.

massive flooding. this is brookville, maryland. you can see a car there stuck in some raging floodwaters. our reporters at our affiliate station there say they don't think anybody is inside that car, but it's the third car that's been trapped in water today. much of the flooding of course in areas surrounding washington, d.c. you can see the storm just passing through the top part of the east coast when you look at the radar. continued weather updates throughout the morning obviously. also a look at the aftermath as well as we track that too. john berman has an update on some of the other stories making news. an update on day three of that tense hostage standoff in alabama where a gunman is holding a 5-year-old boy captive inside an underground bunker. just minutes ago the sheriff held a news conference. he couldn't say much but he did touch on the efforts of volunteers who are helping authorities at the scene. no sound there, but again that hostage situation going on now. it is day three there. >> he thanked the volunteers that have been working.

it's been very tough for them. more news now, ratcheting up the tension in the middle east with the direct hit on syria. syria claims two workers were killed in an air strike on a research facility near damascus. israeli jets struck a convoy believed to be transporting surface-to-air missile parts to hezbollah in lebanon. it is not certain if the u.s. and syrian accounts of the attack refer to the same or maybe separate incidents. new jersey senator robert menendez is denying allegations that he traveled to know a friend's private plane to have sex with prostitutes. he issued a statement wednesday saying that it was simply not true. soledad. >> lots of other things to talk about this morning as we focus on this showdown in the senate. this is going to be very interesting, as this hearing for chuck hagel gets under way. there was early resistance, obviously, and after that there are many people who still predicted in spite of the noisy resistance it might go forward. i think they have been starting to back away from that. i think it will be tougher --

>> i think senator mccain will be one of the toughest asking the questions but i think ultimately we'll see him get through. >> why do you say that? do you think that's the case? in the beginning everyone was saying that. he's got issues on the left, issues on the right but ultimately he'll get through. >> i have no idea if he'll get through, we'll have to see how the hearings in confirmation goes, but it's very interesting that sort of dissolution of his friendship with john mccain. i read a story in the "post" that had the headline hagel and mccain used to be bff. >> but they do differ a lot on foreign policy. those are some of the concerns, he's not going to be tough enough on israel or iran and those are concerns that mccain and others have on the republican side of the senate. >> it's going to be very interesting. i think that especially will be an interesting prism to watch this all through. dana bash takes a look exactly at that issue. >> reporter: at a new hampshire town hall meeting in 2000, a

voter asked then gop presidential candidate john mccain who he would put in his cabinet. listen to his answer. >> as far as secretary of defense is concerned, there's a lot of people that could do that. one of them i think is senator chuck hagel. >> reporter: that's right, mccain volunteered that he would consider chuck hagel for defense secretary. the same man he now criticizes 13 years later for the same post in president obama's administration. >> my biggest concern is his overall attitude about the united states, our role in the world, particularly in the middle east. >> reporter: what happened? to understand the depth of their fallout is to understand how close their friendship once was. beginning in 1996 when mccain lent his star power to hagel's first senate campaign. they shared a bond over their service in vietnam. in mccain's 2000 presidential race, hagel serve eld as campaign co-chair and local surrogate. >> here's a man whose life has been committed to something larger than he is.

he's a selfless person. >> reporter: he was even chosen to introduce mccain at the republican convention that year. but their shared experience in the vietnam war took them in very different directions during the iraq war. mccain was a lead proponent of a military surge. >> we can give the iraqis and their partners the best possible chance to succeed. >> reporter: hagel talked about the surge with scorn. >> the most dangerous foreign policy blunder in this country since vietnam if it's carried out. >> reporter: a source close to mccain said the friends just drifted apart, as friends sometimes do. not because of policy differences. but even mccain acknowledges the change. >> i've noticed over the years that our views on the united states of america and what we should be doing in the world has diverged rather dramatically. >> reporter: by mccain's 2008 presidential run, hagel was more in line with barack obama. the two traveled together on a mideast trip obama used to beef up his foreign policy chops. and hagel was never seen on

mccain's straight talk express. and mccain has been very careful to say he will not block hagel's nomination to be the president's defense secretary, but he also says he's not sure if he will vote for him because of their deep differences now over big issues like iran and afghanistan. mccain's questioning of hagel at this morning's hearing will be the most highly anticipated because of their differences on big issues, but because of the souring of what was a very close and deep friendship that we all saw, those of us covering the two of them in the senate. >> it is going to be fascinating to see, not just what he asks but also the tone, sort of the back and forth. people will read everything into that body language so we can't wait. >> it would be very surprising if john mccain voted against him at the end of the day. i think he'll probably sail through and i think the white house has done an amazing job of getting support for mr. hagel. >> the republican senator from mississippi has said he will support hagel so it really does

seem like the votes are there. >> dana bash for us this morning. thank you, dana, appreciate it. we want to talk a little bit more about this fight over gun control that's happening in washington, d.c., and actually to a large degree happening around the nation. the president has admitted it's going to be a very tough battle is whaesds t he said in an inte he did with univision. >> my suspicion is we're seeing more bipartisan discussion on the immigration issue than on the gun issue. i'm actually optimistic that we can get both done. both will end up generating some opposition and some strong opposition. there will be passions on both sides. >> those remarks came after what was a pretty tense hearing on gun violence in front of the senate judiciary committee. the former arizona congresswoman, gabrielle giffords, you remember she was nearly killed in that shooting back in 2011. she told the committee that too many americans are dying by being shot. senator richard blumenthal was on the senate committee holding that hearing. he is a senator from kek

connecticut. it's very interesting to watch gabby giffords yesterday. her read just is inherently very emotional as she tries to really say every single word. here's a little bit of what she said to those at this hearing. >> you must act. be bold. be courageous. americans are counting on you. >> just to hear her struggle to get the words out really i think just speaks volumes, if you will, about all that she's been through and all about this debate. and yet this hearing did not then go forward with everybody piling on and trying to work together. it became very divisive, kind of contentious. do you think gabrielle giffords can help affect policy in this manner? >> very, very desfinitely and profoundly. her statement was one of the

shortest but most powerful public statements before any congressional hearing i've ever heard. it was really so direct. yes, she did struggle with those words, but there was no mistaking the passion and the depth of her commitment. and when she said be bold, be courageous, americans are counting on you, she also said that children are dying. evoking the images of newtown that i think will be also very power nfl creating a sense of urgency and momentum that can be sustained. i think it will be a tough uphill battle but i think particularly on background checks for both firearms and ammunition purchases there is an irrefutable case because it's simply enforcing the law that people who are dangerous, people who are criminals, convicted felons, dangerous drug addicts or mentally ill or domestic abuse ought to be denied the opportunity to purchase guns or

possess them. >> and yet you know there has been opposition to that. charles blow, a guest on our panel a lot actually, ds had an ed. he said at this moment you have an outraged public against the gun profit ears and gutless politicians. i believe in the end the people will win. do you believe he's framing that correctly, the gutless politicians and gun profiteers and do you think that a ban on assault weapons is really never going to happen? >> it will take some fortitude on the part of politicians to listen to the people, because 90% of the american people want background checks. 80% want them on ammunition purchases. 90% on all purchases of firearms. the majority of americans want a ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines. we need stronger laws also on straw purchases and trafficking.

the majority of american people are on the side of more sensible, rational measures of gun violence but there is still an energetic opposition. >> a lot of it funded by the nra and wayne lapierre said this yesterday, basically saying why not enforce the laws that are already in existence. let me play a little bit of that. >> it's a national disgrace. the fact is we could dramatically cut crime in this country with guns and save lives all over this country if we would start enforcing the 9,000 federal laws we have on the books. i'm talking about drug dealers with guns, gangs with guns and felons with guns. they're simply not being enforced. >> he has a point. enforcement is an issue. >> he has a definite point. there ought to be more rigorous and vigorous enforcement of existing laws. i've advocated that there be more resources to enforce those laws. but at the same time background checks are a means of enforcing

laws. remember that already it is against the law for felons or fugitives, criminals, drug abusers and domestic abusers to buy firearms, but 40% involve no background checks so there's no way of knowing whether criminals are buying those weapons. likewise on ammunition purchases there are no background checks at all. so enforcing existing laws, yes. but the tools to do it, we need more of them and that's why the chief of police who was there yesterday, chief johnson of baltimore, urged that these measures be adopted. and i think our fight for more sensible, rational measures to prevent gun violence eventually will prevail because the american people are on our side. >> senator blumenthal, thank you very much. do you think that's true, guys? are the american people on the side? >> that's what all the polls show and that's what you hear. people want -- i think they agree they should ban assault weapons. >> there is no rational person honestly in spite of what the senator is saying there, there are very few people who believe in assault weapons ban is going

to take place. >> yes. it looks very unlikely. >> so the polls say one thing but what is going to happen in congress is not going to be that. >> you're probably going to get background checks and tougher enforcement but very unlikely we'll see this assault weapon ban go through this year because there are people opposed to it and they represent districts and states where the polling is opposite. >> we're talking about mental health, but the gun shows as well, i think that they need to put a stop to letting just anyone walk in. >> you might not even see that. wayne lapierre said yesterday -- >> if we do get background checks, and when you talk to police chiefs, they said the one thing they will take is background checks so that would be major policy. >> it will be interesting to see what happens in two years. we're just out of the election cycle but we'll be back there soon. when it comes time for the election people care about moms and soccer moms. >> but they care about funding. >> they do. but a lot of attention gets put on mothers and parents at the

time of elections. i'm a mom, i speak a lot to moms as part of my job and they are scared to drop their kids off at school and that's a very fundamental -- >> and politics is local so they want to hear from people because you're ultimately voting them into office. >> or you will be voted out of office, i suppose. i want to get right to senator chuck grassley from the state of iowa. i'm having a hard time speaking today. he's going to talk about violence and video games. this is what he thinks. he was saying that in his testimony yesterday, he thinks there's not enough focus -- >> that's what lapierre said as well. >> it will be interesting to chat with him about that. also one on one with bill gates. we'll tell you why he wants immigration reform. christine sat down and talked to him. that's ahead.

welcome back, everybody. you're watching "starting point." bill gates is weighing in on washington's push for immigration reform. christine had a chance to sit down with him. it's been interesting to get his perspective because there's a couple of debates about immigration in d.c. right now. >> and high-tech workers. he explains why he wants washington to fix immigration to allow more highly skilled workers. >> our immigration system makes it very hard for those people who come in, so, you know, somebody is being offered a job here for over $100,000 and there's other jobs created around that job, you don't want to discourage a company from having to put that job -- >> do we discourage them now? >> oh, absolutely. you can be a student at uc berkeley, foreign born. get this wonderful education. microsoft offers you a job for over $100,000 a year and we have to say if the country will keep you. and most of those students are

told they can't stay. get out of the united states. >> get out of the united states. he wants to change that. and he -- you know, he also is very passionate in his foundation, very passionate about education reform in the united states and measuring results in the u.s. and getting american kids up to snuff on science, technology, engineering, math. he'd like to take the money people pay for the visa to work here, take that money, put it into science and math education in the u.s. so we're growing talent and importing talent at the same time. it's vital to the economy. >> it will be very interesting to see where that goes and if you can do that. there are so many educational systems where math and science is failing or doesn't even exist for students. >> another interesting thing he said, he said that this discussion about highly skilled workers has been held hostage by the illegal immigration debate. he wants to seep -- >> interesting way to put it. >> he said held hostage. fixing the highly skilled immigration part of the problem has been held hostage. he'd like to see both of them fixed. >> his foundation would like to

see both of them fixed. >> he'd like to see both of them fixed but he said it's the best chance in years for both parts of that to be fixed. >> held hostage. that's that's an interesting. >> but the passion around the discussion of "amnesty" and illegal immigration sometimes people call immigration as one big -- it's much more complicated, it's what companies need, what workers need, what families need, what the government needs. >> what education needs. it's absolutely right on that he brings that into the conversation. he is the one to do it, he has the platform for it. >> the president's speech, interesting enough, earlier this week. >> which is why there's consensus on immigration reform. on sunday check out more with bill gates, "fareed zakaria gps" will talk with him about global health, education and poverty. it's on sunday at 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. eastern time. coming up next beyonce singing at the super bowl, after lip syncing at the inauguration.

will she address the controversy in i'm going to go with no. we'll take you to new orleans with the big game preps. >> i don't think we have to teach innovation. i just think you have to coax people out of their fear of trying to innovate. everybody has creative abilities, but people just don't express them. i mean i see people come in here that are afraid to try anything. you give them some classes and some encouragement and they have some success with their products and you see them just change, you see them light up, you see them say, wow, i really can do this. this is stunning. they're stunned. ♪

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super bowl xlvii is just three days away and the brothers harbaugh, the center of attention in new orleans. john coaches the ravens, jim coaches the 49ers, and it was yesterday that their parents took center stage, cnn's carlos diaz has more on that from new orleans this morning. hey, good morning. >> reporter: yes, soledad it was less like a press conference and more like a thanksgiving dinner. where's the drumsticks? at one point jack harbaugh the father of jim and john said, am i talking too much when he was telling stories about the past. you can tell these are proud parents first and football parents a close second and jack

and jackie harbaugh, married 51 years, they're living on top of the world right now. >> this is my hero right here, jackie sepidi harbaugh. another thing we like to say, you're going to ask us how we feel on this historic event, jackie, who has it better than us? no-body! >> that's the family saying, i asked jack and jackie about the potential of a rematch between their sons next year in the super bowl in the big apple and they said, one game at a time, and don't forget by the way, today, soledad, beyonce will have her press conference, possibly addressing whether she did or did not lip sync the national anthem at the inauguration. i honestly think that's going to be the first or second question, she's got to talk about it, taken puts her at a disadvantage because she has to sing a little bit at the super bowl which i don't think she planned to do before the inauguration.

>> interesting, we're going to be watching it. thanks, carlos. also ahead we're talking about extreme weather causing death and destruction all around the south from those troubled storms blowing through the east, plus the latest on the hostage standoff taking place in alabama. 5-year-old boy has been held hostage since tuesday. any end in sight to the situation? we'll update you in a moment. ♪ [ male announcer ] when we built the cadillac ats from the ground up to be the world's best sport sedan... ♪

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welcome, everybody. you're watching "starting point." extreme weather hitting much of the country today. major flooding in the east with cars being stuck on the roadways, tornadoes, thunderstorms, all causing major damage in the south, and now another change, a drastic temperature drop plus that alabama hostage standoff is entering its third day. little boy held by the man accused of killing his school bus driver, the disturbing details of what we're learning about that suspect this morning. walmart changing its ammo policy, why the store is limiting how much you can buy. inside the mind of a serial killer a new documentary explores how jeffrey dahmer went from seemingly normal to a killer and cannibal. ahead talking to iowa

senator charles grassley and documentary producer chris james thompson and robby novak will join us. he is so adorabldorable. it's thursday january 31st and "starting point" begins right now. welcome, everybody. our team this morning, richard socarides a writer for newyorker.com, former senior adviser to president clinton, abby huntsman, host of huffpost live and a storm system has moved through the u.s., a car submerged in floodwaters from affiliate wjla and these are pictures from maryland, this after we showed you another car that was submerged, more examples of just how dang ruls

t dangerous the aftermath has been. look at the pictures from daresville, georgia, one of the hardest hit spots. the person in died, a man in tennessee died. miguel marquez has more. good morning. >> reporter: good morning, this affected so many people, the person who died here was not too far from where we are. this is ground central for where that tornado touched down in this area. he was in a trailer house, the tree went down and killed him inside of it but the storm crosses a broad swathe of the country, packed a powerful punch. >> we can see circulation in the cloud -- >> reporter: a reporter from atlanta affiliate wsb caught one twister as it touched down. >> toward i-75. >> reporter: in its path, utter destruction. this is main street in adairsville, georgia. you can see the back side of the street trucks completely

destroyed own an this side a normal day of work at the daiqui plant, they come here to make parts for tractors, complete devastation, 50 to 100 people working here today, and across this entire area, trucks, everything, shredded. at the plant, justin carnes and his fellow employees took refuge in the bathroom. what did it sound like? >> walls shaking, everything was shaking. >> pressure. >> there was like a pressure on my ears, a high-pitched whistling sound, hurt my ears really bad. >> reporter: the thousand-mile-long storm set off tornados in six states from missouri to georgia, leaving massive damage and creating drastic temperature changes. in nashville, one man died when a tree fell on his home. >> it was a bad site, tree fell like right on it. >> reporter: in memphis, torrential rain and massive flooding, bridges, underpasses,

inundated. in monticello, arkansas, a horse barn collapsed, all 11 horses a-okay. in indiana, downed trees and fire, lightning is suspected. kentucky saw strong winds, flipping tractor trailers like toys. and winds so fierce in scott county, missouri, 48 train cars knocked right over and across alabama, wind, rain and more misery. now what authorities are concentrating on here is getting the electricity back on, about 10,000 people across georgia, the electricity is out but 1,000 have the poles back up on that side of the street and the water systems back going, the water supply is contaminated in adairsville so they can't use the water for now. >> miguel marquez, thank you for the update. we get to meteorologist indra petersons, what does it

look like? >> we're finally seeing the rain out of the area. temperatures dropping 30 degrees from yesterday. the story is the cold air and the wind, take a look at yesterday, this is chicago, their high was 63, record-breaking heat on tuesday. today 17 with a chance for snow flurries. once you go from warm air to cold air and a big drastic change you'll be dealing with a lot of wind. if you have any flights today we are going to see major delays in a lot of our hubs. new york, atlanta, chicago dealing with the delays so please keep that in mind. the other story is the cold air. look at the windchills, this is going to be sticking with us as we go through the weekend. >> thank you for watching us, indra, appreciate it. other story we're following is the tense hostage standoff taking place in alabama where a 5-year-old boy a kindergartener is held hostage in an underground bunker, going into its third day of the hostage situation. the little boy was dragged off of his school bus tuesday afternoon, happened in midland city, alabama, after the gunman

shot and killed the bus driver. we brought you that live news conference in the last hour. the sheriff saying there wasn't much progress made but he did thank the volunteers for what they've been doing around the clock. >> we got a lot of volunteers, you know, even as much as the land that we're standing on now, people have been good enough to work with us through all this and the law enforcement agencies, the red cross, the salvation army, all the private businesses that's brought in food for the volunteers and the workers and law enforcement. >> he also said he wasn't sure how long this situation could last. george howell is live in midland city. so we're learning more about the bus driver, charles polin, what can you tell about him? >> reporter: he is described as a hero, a man willing to die to protect the children on that bus, and here in this community you can tell that people are hurt by what happened here, again, there was a prayer service here in town as people

came together to remember him, and even the "dothan eagle" the local newspaper did a piece on him to talk about him, described him as a man who hated to discipline the students but again a man who sought no recognition for the work that he did and again when you talk to people here, you get the story, this is a person who tried to knock mr. dykes off his balance, protect the kids and was shot and killed in the process and that's really, those are the two things that are happening, people are thinking about mr. pollin but also think being what happened here just behind me, this child who is still in the bunker and now three days, and investigators are doing their best to get him out. >> george howell updating the situation there, thank you, george. let's turn to pastor michael senn, a pastor at the midway assembly of god church, the standoff near the bus happened near his church, he was there roughly 20 minutes after it

happened. there have been many prayer vigils. we heard from the sheriff there's been a number, five or six prayer vigils for people in the region at a loss for what to do as they wait to get some news about this little boy who has been held in the underground bunker since tuesday. pastor senn joins me this morning. talk to me, sir, about the prayer vigil you held last night. how is the community doing? what an awful, awful situation. >> the community of course is traumatized, this is southeast alabama, a peaceful, rural area where we never, ever expected something like this to happen in our home, and people came together last night in not only our church, midway assembly of god but several other churches in the local area come together for a time of unity, of faith, and belief in god to bring this young boy home safe and get him back to his parents where he belongs. >> tell me about exactly what happened. children were running off that bus after the shooting and making their way to your church. what happened when you got

there? >> well, i arrived about 25, 30 minutes after the shooting had happened. i'd been to a funeral service and from what i understand, right after or during the process, several of the children were asked to leave the bus and went running down the hill towards the church to try to seek a place of safety, and some of the children told me the experience of what took place and i saw in their eyes the trauma, because they've never seen anything take place like this, or never expected anything to take place. >> pastor michael senn joining us, pastor of midway assembly of god, one of the churches that was holding a prayer vigil as people wait out the hostage situation, a little boy held in an underground bunker. thanks for talking with us, we appreciate it. other stories to get to this morning, john has that for us. >> wednesday's senate hearings on guns opened with powerful words from former representative gabrielle giffords. it's been two years since she was shot in the head in tucson.

she was there yesterday to urge congress to do something to stop gun violence. listen. >> you must act, be bold, be courageous. americans are counting on you. >> giffords' husband, mark kelly also spoke along with the nra's wayne lapierre. tonight anderson cooper is looking at both sides of the debate in "guns under fire" this is an "ac360" town hall special tonight at 8:00 on cnn, it's going to be really interesting. as they debated gun control in washington another shooting was unfolding. arizona police are searching for the 70-year-old man they say is responsible for a deadly shooting in phoenix. the suspect, arthur douglas harmon was attending a meeting at a law office when he allegedly opened fire. 48 man was killed, two others wounded in the attack. harmon took off in a 2013 kia optima. police say he opened fire on a witness who tried to follow him.

hackers invading the "new york times" have finally been blocked at least for now. this is an amazing story. these hackers out of china have been attacking "the times" over the past four months, infiltrating their computer systems and stealing passwords. the papers say the timing of the attack related or not happens to coincide with their investigative report that revealed relatives of china's prime minister have accumulated billions of dollars in business dealings. as i said t is a fascinating, fascinating story. warning to a lot of reporters out there. >> that may be a coincidence. big night on television, after seven seasons "30 rock" will air its final episode on abc. fans are buzzing all about it on social media, of course many of us think this is one of the great comedies of the last several years, with some of the best writing. >> i have really enjoyed what is a relatively new phenomenon of ending shows before they get into that last three or four seasons where they'rer er iter.

end on a high note, do a great bringing together of the storyline. >> the phrase jump the shark comes from when fonzi jumped the shark. >> don't do that anymore. still ahead on "starting point" a volatile debate on gun control. we'll talk to iowa senator charles grassley on this issue. you're watching "starting point." we're back in just a moment. [ female announcer ] when a woman wears a pad she can't always move the way she wants. now you can. with stayfree ultra thins.

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welcome back, everybody. president obama admitting he's seeing more movement on immigration than gun control and that he believes the latter could be a very uphill battle. here is what he said in an interview with univision. >> my suspicion is we're seeing more bipartisan discussion on the immigration issue than on the gun issue. i'm actually optimistic that we can get both done, both will end up generating some opposition and some strong opposition. there will be passions on both sides.

>> those remarks come on the heels of a very emotionally-charged hearing on gun violence. it began with a statement by gabrielle giffords, the former arizona congresswoman who nearly died in a mass shooting back in 2011. this is what she said. >> you must act. be bold. be courageous. americans are counting on you. >> senator chuck grassley is a republican from the great state of iowa. he's a ranking member on the committee that held that hearing yesterday. it's nice to have you with us, sir, we appreciate your time. >> thank you, soledad. >> you bet. we heard yesterday from gabby giffords' husband, mark, and also heard from wayne lapierre of the nra. here's a little bit of what wayne lapierre had to say >> when it comes to background checks let's be honest, background checks will never be universal because criminals will never submit to them. >> you, too, sir have voted no on background checks at gun

shows, and every time i have a discussion with someone i think it seems so common sense. why not support something as kind of simple as a background check on who is buying a weapon. >> obviously we have some background checks. it's how encompassing you do it. do you do it for one father selling to a son or another relative, how do you cover everything? i think that's the issue, and also the extent to which you have private sales on sunday between relatives and maybe you can't access a system all the time and as fast as you want to do it, but it's something that's going to get a good look and it ought to have a good look but expanding it, i'm not sure that we know where we're going in that direction but there are several areas where we will be legislating, one in the area of prosecuting straw purchasers, stop the trafficking of firearms, where somebody buys and gives to somebody else,

because that other person maybe is a felon. we have to beef up the database here in washington, d.c., have states submit who are felons. they aren't submitting all that information, and a real tough one but it's not easy to answer is, because of virginia tech and tucson and aurora, colorado, and newtown, every one of them had mental problems, shouldn't have had guns in the first place, we've got to do more in the area of mental health. >> i notice you didn't mention assault weapons so i guess you're thinking that is not going to be something that would ever pass? >> i don't think it will, but it isn't going to keep us from doing a lot of things that need to be done in this area, and the reason why i think the assault weapon issue is, is number one is because of the second amendment and the supreme court cases that have recently strengthened that second amendment. it's just as good as any other part of the bill of rights, just

sacred. in so many instances like in the giffords shooting, those guns would not be covered by the ban and you've got the mental health problems in newtown, connecticut, where the guns were stolen. go ahead. >> as you know there's a report everybody's referred to, you referred to it yesterday, this report that was done at the university of pennsylvania, which really did show that in fact, if you look only at assault weapons, following implementation of the ban, i'm reading from page two in their summary, gun crimes involving assault weapons declined by 17% in this ten-year period that they were looking at, so there clearly is, while it didn't affect other gun violence, it did have a near 20% drop in assault weapon gun crimes so it does seem to me there is an indication that a ban could make a difference, maybe not for a specific case but it clearly makes some kind of a difference. >> okay, i also quoted a

department of justice report that had other points of view along that line and kind of refutes that, but let's, i guess you can argue over numbers but here's the most important point is that when we had this gun ban and a situation similar to newtown, happened in colorado, columbine school and that was during the gun ban and another thing is, you know, you can talk about semiautomatic rifles but -- >> sir that's of course because it's in the population. >> what about semiautomatic shotguns as an example. >> clearly some of that is there are so many of the guns in the population. part of the argument is that if you start now that there's potential down the road to make some of a difference. sometimes i hear the argument that you're never going to get rid of all the guns or never going to get rid of all the assault weapons. it seems to me to be a little bit of a specious argument. let me ask you another question. seems to me having the cdc just do research on gun violence

would be a common sense kind of thing and that -- why would you not want to have research to measure the impact of firearms? >> well i suppose because the center for disease control is all about studying diseases and ownership of guns is not a disease. >> it's about public health, killing, if you look at a city like chicago where there's been massive, massive deaths from gun violence, that's not a public health issue? >> well, i think that's the place where you'd study the issue within our society of black violence on blacks, you know, as an example, and the amount of guns that are there and most of those guns are pistols and not the guns that you're talking about on this program. >> well, certainly when we're looking at assault weapons i know that you know most of those perpetrators have been white men, number one, and number two, i think that just measuring them, you know how much money was spent back in 1993 researching gun violence? you want to give me a guess on

what that number is, sir? >> i suppose you're going to tell me it's zero. >> no, sir, in 1993 it was $2,500,000 was spent through the cdc on researching the impact of guns on people and you know what that number went down to between 2009 and 2012? it dropped something like 95%. $100,000. >> is that an issue now that the president signed those executive orders? >> i don't know, i would think that anybody who wants to figure out how to stop people from dying and gun violence whether it's suicide, whether it's small children being killed in a massacre, whether it's a domestic violence that just studying the issue would be a good idea for everybody. >> i think i said i agree with you, because that's part of the mental health issues that we have to deal with yet during this debate and we're going to deal with it because in every one of these instances that keeps cropping up, where mass killings, people had mental health issues. they shouldn't have had guns in

the first place. >> well, we'll see where this debate goes. senator charles grassley joining us, thank you for your time sir, we appreciate it. >> thank you. >> you bet. well, listen up for the men on the panel, you and you, going to get in the mood and i mean in the mood by cleaning up around the house. there's a new study on that. >> that is quite a transition. >> well, you know i'm known for my transitions, awkward as they may be. you want to hear about that, that's coming up. >> i'm terrified. >> you should be. 

welcome back. you're watching "starting point." here's a look at what's trending on the web. you got some rhythm? houston rockets fan busting a

move to run dmc caught on the old school dance cam at banker's life fieldhouse in indianapolis, that was during halftime in the game against the pacers. come on, man, you can do it. >> where do you learn that? >> from mommy and daddy, and he is so cute. >> look at that. >> you were just doing that at the commercial break. >> every commercial break t helps me with the news. in other news as i was referring to in that turn just a moment ago if you're a husband who likes to help your wife out around the house it may not pay off if you know what i mean, it may not pay off. new study suggested that married men who spend more time doing what many consider to be traditionally feminine household tasks like grocery shopping or cleaning or even cooking report having less sex than husbands who stick to more traditionally masculine jobs like gardening or patching the drywall. that's so sexy. >> look at that look. that is one great jaw buohn ber look. >> doing the cooking and

cleaning. >> i have news for you -- >> let's get john berman's take on this. >> let's just say i chop a lot of wood, all right? >> can we get a confirmation from your wife? >> whoa! >> all right, we're moving on. coming up next we'll talk about a new documentary that takes us inside the mind of a serial killer, talking about jeffrey dahmer. the director of a new film called "the jeffrey dahmer files" will talk to us and joined by the detective who eventually arrested dp eed dahm that's ahead. what i really need is sleep. introducing the ishares core, building blocks for the heart of your portfolio. find out why 9 out of 10 large professional investors choose ishares for their etfs. ishares by blackrock. call 1-800-ishares for a prospectus which includes investment objectives, risks, charges and expenses. read and consider it carefully before investing. risk includes possible loss of principal.

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>> thanks so much, soledad. that massive deadly 1,000-mile storm system moved through the eastern u.s. new pictures coming in this morning of cars submerged in floodwaters in maryland. we've heard of three cars in maryland this morning alone, just more examples of how dangerous this massive storm has been. adairsville, georgia, 60 miles north of atlanta, was among the hardest hit spots, one person died there, as did a man in tennessee. parents of students killed in the massacre at sandy hook elementary school called for a town hall meeting in newtown, connecticut. dave benjamin lost his son, and told his neighbors the second amendment does not give people the right to carry around assault rifles. >> the liberty of my person to have an assault weapon in high capacity magazine is second to the right of my son to his life.

>> that hearing lasted nearly six hours. most of the speakers were in favor of new gun control legislation, but several newtown residents who opposed such measures also did make their views known. the man behind the manti te'o girlfriend hoax is going to spill the beans with dr. phil. ronaiah tuiasosopo appears twice on "the dr. phil show." he claims he was the voice of te'o's fake girlfriend lennay kek kekua. he said he was in love with the football star and said why he ended the relationship. >> i wanted to end it because after everything i had gone through i finally realized i had to move on with my life and had to get, you know, my real me, ronaiah, i had to start just living and let this go. >> tuiasosopo tells dr. phil he is "confused" about his

sexuality. arab-american groups are criticizing this coca-cola commercial teaser calling it racist for depicting an arab walking through the desert with a camel. in the ad he's competing with other groups to reach a giant coke bottle. on the coke website people are allowed to vote who they think should reach the bottle but you can't vote for the arab character. one group is asking the soda giant to change the ad before it airs during the super bowl and in response coke said this to reuters "coca-cola is an exclusive brand enjoyed by all demographics. we illustrate our core values from fun and refreshment to happiness, inspiration and optimism across all of our marketing communications." hmm. soledad? >> so why can't you vote for the arab character? hmm. i guess that question remains. seems odd, seems like it would be easily solved, people could vote for whoever they wanted to. we're talking about a disturbing story in america's history, jeffrey dahmer you might remember, one of the

nation's most notorious serial killers, he murdered and dismembered 17 young men and boys, in some cases he ate parts of their bodies. . 1994, dahmer himself was murdered while he was in prison and there's a new documentary called "the jeffrey dahmer files" explores what seemed to be a very normal person became a serial killer that, film features an interview with one of the lead detectives on the case, patrick kennedy who described a rather chilling experience he had in jeffrey dahmer's home. >> on the door that i opened up, there was condiments, mustard, ketchup, a-1 sauce that kind of stuff. i will admit from the bottom of my feet to the top of my head, everything in my body said you got to get the hell out of here. >> detective kennedy is with us along with chris james thompson director of "the jeffly dahmer files." why did it give you that feeling from the tip of your head down to your feet? >> i worked homicide in a couple of years and seen many shootings and dismemberments and some gory

things but to see a freshly severed head with the eyes and the mouth open in an empty refrigerator the word surreal is used many times and you don't understand it, but it was. it was an irrational fear. jeffrey dahmer was arrested, he was handcuffed, he had two police officers in control of him and i had a partner there and i was armed with a gun so i knew i wasn't in any danger, but it was just an overwhelming almost irrational fear. of course, i knew you can't walk away from something like that so you have to get control of it, but the initial shock of seeing of opening the refrigerator and finding the head with the guy's eyes and face looking at me. >> why tell that story now? it's been years and years, two decades since america was sort of living through the headlines about the jeffrey dahmer story. why did you as a filmmaker want to tell that story now? >> i grew up in milwaukee and my parents got divorced and i was living between milwaukee and madison. people talked about it in

madison different than milwaukee. milwaukee they talked about it like a flood or hurricane, it was a disaster affected a lot of people. in madison people talked about it like it was a movie coming out next friday night, they were sort of more excited about it. i was curious how the effects had lasted and unfolded over a long time so i think for something that's this complicated and dense to look back 20 years later and see how pat and pam and dr. gjenson, ho does it sort of affect you over the long-term. looking back, you have sort of some 20/20 you get to look at things a second time and sort of see how it unfolded. >> seems like those most devastated by this were the people that knew him and we talk often about the difference between a mass murderer and a serial killer, and that sometimes with the serial killer, the signs, you can't always see it early on. is that why they were so disturbed by what happened? >> imagine your next door neighbor killing 17 people, that would be tough for anyone to

have to deal with. it's interesting, pat often says had i asked him to do this interview a year after it happened he wouldn't be able to talk about it. >> how did it affect you, 20-some-odd years later, if you couldn't talk about it a year out, 20 years later does it still affect you? how has it changed you? >> i wasn't really allowed to talk about it until i retired in 2001, we were under a gag order and at the time, i was a young detective, it was 20 years ago so it was exciting, but the six weeks that i spent interviewing him eight to ten hours a day, we had v had we'd have breakfast and lunch together. i was highly aware it was publicized and didn't want to make mistakes. i put all of my time and my efforts and i guess my whole life really went into that interrogation at the time, because that's all i could really do. >> what did you take away from him, what did you at the end of all that time spent with someone who i think americans were all trying to get into his obviously very deranged head, what did you

walk away with? >> the thing i took away is how much we don't know about people, even the people we know and love the most, how much inner secrets that we can keep. he had created a whole world for himself that only he knew about and he relished this world, and the more i talked to him, people would say oh you're looking into the face of evil, but you didn't see evil in his eyes there. people say oh, he was a nice guy. he wasn't really a nice guy but he could be charming. he was intelligent. he was a product of upper white middle class, he was given all the resources he needed growing up. he knew how to talk to people in authority. >> he could navigate the system very well. that's really what kept a lot of people from being able to be clued in to him. the film is called "the jeffrey dahmer files" 20 some-odd years later it is a crazy story, it really is. chris james thompson, director and investigator patrick kennedy now retired, thank you.

>> thank you very much. we'll talk to a 9-year-old boy with a pretty big message, the video is going viral, it's the kid president, robby novak will join us. anyone have occasional constipation, diarrhea, gas, bloating? yes! one phillips' colon health probiotic cap each day helps defend against these digestive issues with three strains of good bacteria. live the regular life. phillips'.

welcome back to "starting point." i'm clps cls minding your business. u.s. stocks are on the verge of record highs. stock futures down this morning after a mixed pause yesterday we'll call it but records are within sight. the s&p 500 has more than doubled since early 2009. why? corporate earnings fed stimulus, investors are coming back. will the jobs come back? the government reports its monthly jobs tally tomorrow. economists predict 180,000 jobs were added and the unemployment rate fell to 7.7%. ben bernanke sitting down with oprah, not really. this is a spoof but listen a schiff report spoof on oprah's interview with armstrong with the fed chief to propping up the economy doping monetary stimulus. >> yes or no did you ever utilize risking monetary stimulants to artificially boost your central banking performance? >> yes. >> was one of those financial

steroids and mortgage-backed securities? >> yes. >> it goes on like that and if you're a nerd it's pretty funny. meantime gun and ammunition sales have skyrocketed since the sandy hook tragedy so great for guns and ammunition, walmart is limiting how much ammunition its customers can buy. starting today walmart says you can get three boxes per day. walmart will reassess this policy once its suppliers have more inventory. bill gates weighing in on washington's push for immigration reform. i sat down with him. he told me immigration reform is more likely today than it has been in years and he wants d.c. to allow more highly skilled immigration. >> i'd love to see us solve illegal immigration, a tougher problem. the high talent immigration has kind of been held hostage to that broader problem. >> you can check out more sunday with "fareed zakaria gps" at 10:00 a.m. and 1:00 p.m. eastern. >> he does this annual report

and the letter he sent out, that's why he's making the rounds. ahead on "starting point" we're going to introduce you to a 9-year-old boy who is making a big difference. it's the kid president here to tell us why he's giving the nation a pep talk. you're watching "starting point," there he is, come on in, robby. ♪ da, da, da, da, da, da, da n'. see, i figured low testosterone would decrease my sex drive... but when i started losing energy and became moody... that's when i had an honest conversation with my doctor. we discussed all the symptoms... then he gave me some blood tests. showed it was low t. that's it. it was a number -- not just me. [ male announcer ] today, men with low t have androgel 1.62% (testosterone gel). the #1 prescribed topical testosterone replacement therapy, increases testosterone when used daily. women and children should avoid contact with application sites. discontinue androgel and call your doctor if you see unexpected signs of early puberty in a child, or signs in a woman,

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welcome back, everyone. john berman with a couple of stories that caught our attention this morning. check out this matchup image of late apple founder steve jobs and actor ashton kutcher. it's kutcher on the left, jobs is on the right. kutcher tweeted out the picture thanking the sundance film festival for premiering "jobs" in which he plays the apple guru. the movie will be in theaters in april. their music was really the soundtrack of the world war ii era. ♪ he's the boogie woogie bugle boy of company b ♪ ♪ they made him play the bugle >> singer patty andrews, the last survivor of the andrews sisters passed away yesterday in

california, she was 94 years old. the andrews sisters sold more than 80 million records with hits like this "boogie woogie bugle boy of company b." >> end of an era, thank you. we all need a pep talk, the opening words from a video by kid president, that would be a 9-year-old third grader from tennessee, his name is robby novak and his videos have been seen by more than 5 million people inspiring folks to make the world awesome and to be a party. >> the world needs you to to stop being boring. yeah, you. everybody can be boring but you're gooder than that. life isn't a gang, life isn't a cereal, well it is a serial. is life is a game praren't we a on the same time? i'm on your team. we got air, nose, heartbeat.

that means it's time to do something. >> kid president robby novak is with us this morning and brother-in-law brad montegue. signs for gabbi, tell me. who is gabbi? >> gabbi is this girl who she has cancer, we're trying to, hmm -- >> trying to give her the kid president treatment. >> yeah. >> a little encouragement. >> a little shout out, you're mr. inspiration. i've always wanted to vote for a president who says you're gooder than that, and i love that. tell me about, brad, how this video came together. >> well, we've always done weird creative little things together, we've done some songs and just been goofy but it was just for our family and friends and the first video came with the question what if the president really were a kid and i think

that would be interesting because he would be considered about everybody's emotional well-being. >> their awesomeness. >> is everybody happy s the world awesome. oh we forthe go this. >> what is that? >> he's making fun of the fact i have makeup on. >> we have a lot of makeup on here. did you bring me a present, robby? >> yeah. >> i am voting for you. >> what did you get? >> it's from magnolia bakery. robby, that's awesome. you really make my life good. >> you're a good president. >> let me ask you a question, robby. >> is it one for gabb sni. >> you want me to send one back to gabbi? can i have the chocolate and she has that one. there's gabbi right there. we put up a picture of gabbi on the screen. i'm going to have one cupcake and send this one to you. >> and she'll share it with all of us. >> have you met with the real president, do you know the real president? >> barack obama? >> barack obama, have you given

him some advice? >> no, because he doesn't need it. >> oh. >> you did a little work with josh groban i noticed, you're a fan of his, right? >> yes. >> you wanted him to come on the show and you kind of had all your followers or people who follow your videos some 5 million people or so sent a message to josh. what did they tell josh? what did you want josh to do? >> i wanted him to sing for me. >> and you are a persuasive man because he sure did. let's play a little bit. you can listen to it right now. this one is called the pencil sharpener. ♪ >> oh, i know that one. ♪ the internet just got served. >> you might have the best laugh ever. >> thank you. >> you're most welcome. >> you're wearing a cast today.

what happened? >> i broke my finger. >> ouch, ouch. i know you have, robby has a brittle bone syndrome. >> yeah, he's actually had a lot -- it's interesting because a lot of people noticed he's got braces and things in the videos, we try not to talk about it in the videos because it's really not who he is in the videos but it's been encouraging that he is, has a brittle bone condition, and it's caught osteogenesis imperfecta and a lot of people refer to it as just o.i. he's had over 70 breaks since he was born and the videos first caught on with our family and friends, it was a kid telling people to stop complaining and dance more and it's coming from a kid who has been through so much and so that's inspiring and one of the things in the new video where he's running, that's the thing that a lot of mothers who have kids with o.i. have really connected with, because -- >> you worry about them. >> he's a kid who shouldn't run.

so there's poetry to the fact it's a boy who loves to dance. >> robby we are so honored to have you mr. kid president. i love it you're sending a shout out to your friend gabbi. >> robby, can i be your vice president? >> i picked one. >> you already have one. >> anybody you want to share? with us? >> you're going to make an announcement? >> mr. president, is there something you're announcing today on "starting point"? >> my vice president is, what's his name? >> hysterical. >> what's his name? >> joe biden? >> no. >> hillary clinton, what about hillary clinton as vice president? >> i don't think i have a vice president. >> oh. >> what about soledad o'brien as vice president? >> or me. >> right here. >> abby wants to be vice president. >> she's really angling for it.

robby thank you for visiting with us. anyone who has not seen your videos they're not only inspirational they're hilarious. you literally have the best laugh on the internet. >> thank you. >> you're welcome. "end point" is up next. we're back in just a moment.

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time for "end point." kick us off. >> your interview for senator grassley he's for nothing when it comes to gun control, no background checks no, research, no assault weapons ban. it was not hopeful for the gun control advocates this morning. >> you can see why people are not so hopeful what's going to come out of it. >> gabby giffords you could not help but feel emotion and she was speaking out. they own guns and they're doing exactly what they need to do and say exactly what needs to be said. >> final word with. >> i know nothing about football except for the super bowl that andy muller played football with jim harbaugh at university of michigan when i would sit in the stands with my family and andy is now an offensive coach for the ravens. >> you're sending a shout out. i love it. >> they're all in the family. >> a shout out to christine romans who is 25t